What Do Customers Want?
Customers want us to meet their expectations If we spend the time determining customer requirements, we can increase our resilience if we meet their requirements – ‘Needs + Expectations’. John Seddon has some great ideas on customer satisfaction and delivering on our promises (vanguard-method.net)
Determining ‘needs’ is relatively easy – needs are stated in the contract or agreement, even if it’s a ‘walk-in’ situation. Expectations are another story – they expect us to return phone calls and emails in a timely manner, they expect us to pay attention to them, they expect us to be reliable and give them a sense of assurance. Think of how many times you’ve seen the phrase ‘money back guarantee’ or something similar to increase the sense of ‘assurance’
In order to meet these expectations and deliver value to our customers we need to know what our ‘purpose’ is. We need to deliver on our promises the most efficient way possible in order to enhance the customer experience. Making the transaction easier for customers makes the experience better for them, too. Here’s Seddon’s visual representation of delivering on our purpose:
Vanguard Consulting – ‘Getting Started’ workbook
This means that the manager’s role is to work on the system for delivering what our customer is asking for. This is not simply ‘motivating’ people – it’s giving them the things they need – processes, infrastructure, work environment, freedom to act, managerial support and a clear picture of what ‘a good result’ looks like.
Using a systems approach can help you deliver more successfully and ISO 10004 can help you systematize how you measure your results!